Ties
by Himura2323
Summary: Freddie is attending the one marriage he never thought he would live to see. Sam's. The only problem is that he isn't the groom. Shortish multichap story about our favorite ship. Rated T for swearing.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's note. Hey everyone. Sorry about the huge delay on my other story. Called IPayback to any new readers out there. I'm just having a little writer's block with it and I'm deciding to try something a little different to get the writing flowing again. Don't worry haven't forgotten about it or any of my faithful readers. This story started off in my mind as a simple one shot and kinda just grew. Oh well hope it ends up well. Even I dont know what its going to end up as. My spin on Freddie and Sam's futures. Hope you enjoy. Be sure to review so I know what you all think. OK on with the show._

"Ugh I hate ties!" Freddie groaned wrestling with the skinny black cloth for a few more minutes before throwing it across the room and sitting down on his bed.

"Fredward?" Mrs. Benson called through the door. You could practically see the concern on her face through the door. "You OK in there?"

Freddie shook his head with a chuckle. He was only staying at home for a few days but his mom was still treating him like he was 15.

"Yeah mom I'm fine." He called back.

There was a few moments of silence before his mom spoke again.

"You know Freddie," she said in a much more quiet tone. "If you aren't feeling up to this you don't have to come. I'll just go by myself. I'm sure Sam will understand if I say you were sick or something like that."

Freddie was more than a little surprised. His mom was actually volunteering to help him out of a responsibility? What was going on here.

"No mom I'm fine. Ill be out of here in like 30 minutes."

"Ok Freddie if you are sure. Ill be in the kitchen if you need me." She finally replied dropping her quiet tone and was immediately back to her normal cheery one. Freddie listened to the sound of her footsteps retreating from his door. After a few minutes of staring at the wall in front of him he started to glance around his room. The room looked identical to how it had when he had moved out the summer of senior year. All his galaxy wars figurines stood neatly in a row on his dresser. His mom had obviously dusted and cleaned and done her best to keep this room identical to how it had been when he left. From his random electronics projects sitting scattered on his table, the random movie and TV posters scattered around the walls, to the corkboard behind his door covered in photos. Getting up he walked over to the door and looked down fondly at the multitude of pictures cataloging his past here in Seattle. There was the picture of him along with Carly and Sam after their first ICarly. The picture of Sam pelting Gibby with water balloons while he and Carly did their best to make her stop and not get hit themselves. Many more pictures taken during their misadventures related back to their wacky webshow. The wave of nostalgia hit him pretty hard as he scanned over the pictures until finally his eyes stopped on the one that he knew he hadn't put up on the board. He quickly removed the pushpin and took the picture. It was one of the few where it was just Sam and him. He realized this one was taken while they were dating. He had taken her to an amusement park a few hours away from Seattle. They spent hours riding the roller coasters, munching on over priced snacks, and just generally enjoyed being together. The picture was taken near the end of the night when Sam had gotten tired and demanded a piggyback ride. It really was a good picture Freddie thought. The two of them laughing with a small stuffed penguin clutched in Sam's hand (Freddie had spent almost $50 trying to win for her.) Looking down at Sam's smiling face Freddie couldn't help but feel himself smile and trace the edges of her face with his fingertips. This was the main reason he was so reluctant to go to this wedding. How could he stand to see the love of his life marry some other guy? With the picture still in his hands he went over and sat down on his bed again and thought back to the happiest few weeks of his life. Sam and Freddie's relationship had been just like their friendship, unpredictable with lots of arguing and fighting. There was no way they should be together he had thought but it had been perfect.

And then it was over before he could even know what went wrong. Deciding to break up was the biggest mistake he had ever made. Surprisingly everyone else was shocked when they broke it off.

"It was mutual" they told everyone

it wasn't even close...

"Freddie? Are you ready?" His mom asked snapping him from his day dream.

"Yeah I will be in a second." He called back. He dropped the picture on the bed and went to retrieve his discarded tie. After a few moments he managed to mangle it into something that appeared proper. Looking at himself in the mirror one last time he decided he looked alright and made for the door. Looking back he saw the picture still sitting on his bed. On a whim he walked over and slipped it into the inside pocket on his vest and then closed the door behind him.

…...

The drive to the country club was thus far silent with only the hum of the engine and the ramblings of talk radio to filter through the car. Freddie was driving much to his mother's chagrin. Finally Mrs. Benson spoke up.

"You know Freddie you don't have to come if you don't want to?" She asked quietly.

Freddie sighed before replying.

"I know mom. What makes you think I don't want to go?" He really was curious as to how she knew.

"Freddie I'm your mother." She stated matter-of-factly. "I can tell when you are feeling upset. That and the fact that whenever we tried to even talk about this wedding you found some excuse just to leave the room." She finished

"Well mom I'm fine don't worry." He finally said trying to reassure her even though he was still reeling on the inside. It seemed to work because she returned her eyes to the road and fell silent. At least for a while.

"You know I always wondered when your wedding day would be Freddie." Mrs. Benson eventually said. "It scared me to death that some woman would come into your life and hurt you."

Freddie was wondering why she brought this up. He was just getting out of his residency following a whirlwind 4 years in medical school. Getting married hadn't been on his mind ever. Mrs. Benson continued her thought.

"To be honest Sam was the girl I was most afraid of you dating. She bullied you so much and made you so upset. I was so worried she'd hurt you when she was with you." Mrs. Benson had started to tear up a little when she said this. Freddie also felt a pit in his stomach.

"Mom why are you telling me all this? Me and Sam are over. She's getting married. She's not going to hurt me."

Mrs. Benson turned to face her son as soon as he stopped at the next light. Freddie turned and saw she had her most dead serious expression. The tears were just starting to flow from her eyes.

"Because I was wrong Freddie! Sam didn't hurt you when you were dating. She hurt you when you broke up. I know you love her still Freddie and I just don't want you to get hurt..." she had been shouting when she started but her voice started to crack near the end.

"Mom... It's too late for us ok? I blew it long ago. She moved on and there is nothing I can do about it but be happy for her." Freddie's head was slumped with defeat and his voice was starting to waver also but he shook his head and wiped his eyes before continuing to drive. "It's ok mom I'll be fine don't worry."

"Ok Freddiebear." She said still looking at him for a few moments before turning her attention back to the road. "Slow down Freddie!" She ordered

Now there was the mom that Freddie remembered. With a chuckle he lowered his speed another 5 miles an hour and continued on his way.

_Ok that's it for chapter 1. Hope you all liked it. Basically was Freddie letting out how he felt for Sam and a few sweet mother son moments. Let me know what you think. Reviews are always appreciated. Peace._


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey everyone. I'm glad you enjoyed the first chapter. I got quite a few reviews pretty quickly so I hope you enjoy this chapter just ad much. This will be the longer middle chapter. It begins with Freddie's arrival at the wedding. Hope you all enjoy and be sure to review._

Freddie was shocked when he pulled into the country club parking lot. Sprawled across the vast front lawn of the club was a valet station, huge arrangements of flowers, and a mass of people milling around making their way to the club from their ludicrously expensive cars. He guessed this was one of the perks of marrying into old money. And while Sam wasn't that shallow but this much money certainly didn't hurt. They seemed to have chosen a perfect date as the entire wedding was covered on sunlight but much of the heat wasn't reaching them; a rare combination in the almost bipolar weather they had in Seattle. He slowly pulled the car up to the valet station and, leaving it running, stepped out and tossed the keys to the teenager managing the station before pausing to look into the almost mirror like shine on the car situated next to him. He straightened that infernal tie and pulled imperceivable wrinkles from his clothes. Just the thought of seeing Sam again made him nervous.

"Oh stop fretting so much Freddie. You look fine." Mrs. Benson chided. He couldn't help it. The nerves were getting to him. Seeing that there was little she could do Mrs. Benson shrugged before stepping near a large group of adults and began to mingle. Freddie remained fidgeting by the valets. He almost jumped out of his skin when he felt a firm hand clap him on the shoulder.

"Hey! What's up man?". Freddie turned to the familiar voice but for a moment he had trouble placing a name with that face. After a few seconds of awkward silence it dawned on him.

"Gibby?" He asked uncertainty.

"Ha of course." The once shirtless wonder replied with a smile. Freddie knew he had been away from home for a while, but he didn't think the change in everyone would be this drastic. He recognized so few faces. Hell even Gibby was nearly unrecognizable.

"Wow Gibby you certainly do clean up nicely. What have you been up to these last few years?" Gibby had that same goofy smile he had back in high school. Everything else from the chubbiness to the need to be shirtless seemed to have been stripped away.

"Oh not too much. Since I got out of law school I have been working with this big firm out of Texas. Gonna be about a year now. What about you? No one I asked seemed to know what you've been doing the past few years." He asked with a smile. It still to this day dumbfounded me that Gibby managed to make it as a lawyer.

"I'm doing alright. I got out of medical school last year and have been working on my residency."

"Oh that's so cool man. Never would have pegged you for a doctor though. Always thought you'd be building computers or something like that. Anyways I gotta go. Carly asked me to grab her some hors d'oeuvres and then come back.". Gibby called over his shoulder as he turned and walked away with a wave. Neither of them had noticed that the once clear sky was starting to grow cloudy and overcast.

No one would have guessed that Gibby and Carly would be married and have a baby on the way. Freddie had hoped he could have come back for the wedding but it coincided with a huge exam he couldn't miss so he sent his congratulations and a gift. The real reason he had hoped to come back though was that he wanted to see Sam again. He kept missing opportunities and eventually, even if he wouldn't admit it, he had given up on seeing her again at all. He knew there was no guarantee she would even want to see him. She was different. Hell everyone was so different. Spencer was still a goof, but he was different than Freddie remembered him. Course he had to grow up a little what with two kids off his and a family to take care of. Carly was married now, pregnant and starting her own fashion line. Freddie sighed and after hitting the bar, eventually took a seat in one of the chair that had been arranged into the wedding "chapel" situated on the vast back lawn of the club. Few guests had made it out this far and he just wanted to be alone for now. Nursing his drink he thought back on how Sam was the one who's transformation was the biggest of all. Following their breakup, hanging out with Sam had been awkward. She seemed much more distant. Even her insults were few and far between. She stopped her delinquent behavior and finished her course work well enough to finish top 25% in their class. After graduation, Freddie had been looking forward to spending the summer with Sam and Carly, but with Carly an ocean away and Sam being so distant he decided to move out early and get a jump start on college. It was halfway through his sophomore year that Freddie heard that Sam was involved with another guy. The news hit him hard and he channeled his anger into his studies and graduated with honors in three years. He had tried dating in college but every girl he found ended up having the same flaw. They weren't Sam. They all were measured in his mind against Sam and none of them measure up. He entered medical school soon after, doing his best to drown any emotions he might have felt about his past life with his work. 4 difficult years later he graduated top of his class with the plan of becoming a dermatologist. He even had a nice cushy job set up for him at the hospital in San Francisco. Any thoughts of his former life were long since repressed until the day that he got that package.

_You are cordially invited to attend the wedding of Mitchell Meyers and Samantha Puckett on July 15th 2020._

Freddie had sat on the steps to his tiny loft for over an hour staring at that line. He had traced the tiny calligraphy with his eyes a million times. This must have been the guy Sam was dating after him. He couldn't believe she was getting married. Sam seemed like the type who would never get married. Guess that was another part of her that had changed. And Freddie couldn't believe the guy she was getting ready to tie the knot with. There wasn't a person alive in Seattle who didn't know the Meyers. This old money family was basically unofficial royalty with thirteen senators and 5 representative along with the odd mayor or governor scattered amongst their ranks. Mitchell was the oldest child of the family's main line and as such stood to inherit the entire kingdom one day. He was also around ten years older than Freddie and Sam. This had been way too much to take in for him that night. He got up from his steps just as the sun finally sank under the horizon. After tossing the rest of the invitation onto his kitchen table he called and RSVPed with the wedding coordinator before picking up the large bottle of scotch he kept stashed in his kitchen for special occasions. He sank down into his favorite chair and chased away his sad thoughts with shoot after shoot of the deep amber liquid.

"Excuse me young man but I believe you are in my seat."

Freddie glanced up from his drink to see the was looking right at an elderly man. He looked to be about 70 with a full head of gray hair. He liked a little chubby but in the harmless old man sort of way. He appeared to be an average day elderly individual save for his eyes. They were this piercng blue that felt like they could look through him.

"Young man? The chair please? My knees aren't what they used to be."

"Oh I'm so sorry sir. My mistake." Freddie apologized after jumping up realizing that he had been staring at the man.

"That's quite alright Mr. Ah..."

"Benson sir. Freddie Benson." The man's eyes started to twinkle.

"Oh so you are Freddie Benson. Good to meet you son." He states while extending a hand. Freddie shook back and was surprised to feel how strong his grip was inspite of his age. The cloudy sky was growing an angry shade of gray and many of the guests had begun to notice and drift towards the club. Freddie and the elderly gentleman hadn't noticed yet.

"Excuse me? I'm sorry but I do not believe we have met before." Freddie couldn't help but be a little confused. Aside from those eyes and that deceptive strength nothing about this man seemed familiar.

"Ah how rude of me I haven't introduced myself. Samuel Isaacson. Good to meet you son." It was good to know his name but it still didn't help Freddie identify him.

"It is nice to meet you too Mr. Isaacson. I'm sorry but I still cannot see where I would know you from. Are you a part of the groom's family?" The Samuel chuckled before responding.

"Hell no. There is no way I'd associate with people as slimy as them." Freddie was liking the man more and more. "No I'm here for Samantha. You see I'm ..."

Whatever Samuel said next was drowned out be a brilliant flash of lightning and a deafening crack of thunder. Before they could move the heaven seemed to have opened up and a torrent of rain poured down.

"Lets get you inside Mr. Isaacson." Freddie replied before taking off his vest and offering it to the elderly man as a means to keep the rain off of him and then walking back towards the club with Samuel. Freddie glanced back at the chapel and saw the rain was essentially destroying it. Silk seat covers were ruined with the rain water and mud, being splashed up from the heavy rain, trimmed the bottom edge of all the white furniture and linen. He would be ashamed to admit it but he was almost happy to see all this being destroyed. Maybe the wedding would be called off. Maybe he wouldn't lose Sam forever. He didn't dare get his hopes up. They were the last pair to reach the door. Freddie's clothes were basically soaked through but he was worried about Samuel who had began to shiver in the blasting AC of the building.

"Wait here Mr. Isaacson. I'm going to go find you some towels ok? " Samuel grabbed his arm to try and stop him.

"Freddie there is no need for that. I'm fine." He said trying to smile it off but it was obvious that he was extremely cold.

"I'm sorry but I really must insist. Please wait here ok? " Freddie said with the stern tone his seniors had taught him during residency for dealing with stubborn patients. He was satisfied when he saw Samuel nod yes and he wandered off looking for towels. He stopped by the bar.

"Hey you see that Guy over there? " gesturing to where Samuel was sitting. The bar man nodded. "Go give him a cup of coffee please. " Freddie said and handed the man a $20.

He then walked up and down the halls looking for a country club employee to ask for towles, but they all seemed to be busy at the party. There was also a thick haze of cigar smoke filling the air where thee guests were, the smokers being exclusively Meyers's. After about 20 minutes of searching Freddie gave up on finding towels and hoped the coffee he order would be enough. He returned to find Samuel gone and a note sitting on the chair he had been in.

Thank you for the coffee Freddie. I will be sure to pay you back for that some other time. I was needed by the bridal procession. Don't worry they found me some towels. I will hopefully see you after the ceremony. Why couldn't my granddaughter find someone nice like you instead of that shifty Mitchell guy. Oh well it's not for me to decide. Enjoy the wedding Freddie.

Samuel

_Ok everyone that's chapter two. I had a hard time writing this one. I literally deleted half and rewrote it. Samuel is Sam's grandfather but I'm sure most of you figured that out as you read through. He will be more important later on. Be sure to let me know what you think of it. And feedback is always welcome. Whether it iis positive or not. Thanks _


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's note. I'm glad you all liked that last chapter. It was a hard one to write. This chapter will have the "start" of the wedding. Enjoy. And please review._

"Why couldn't my granddaughter find someone nice like you..."

Granddaughter...

Freddie was dumbstruck. How had he not realized that Samuel was Sam's grandfather. They had the same deceptive strength. The same unwillingness to accept help. Help they almost had the same name. Sam had once told him that she was named after her grandfather (At the time desire had laughed at her and got a swift buttersock upside the head). As if that hadn't been enough, there was no way he could mistake those icy blue eyes for anyone else's.

Standing frozen in that spot he reread Samuel's note a few times; his eyes kept gravitating to the line about wishing Sam was with him rather than Mitchell. Freddie couldn't help but smile at that. If only Samuel had meet him earlier and passed that sentiment on to Sam. Guess it was too late for that. He was so caught up with his thoughts that when the various ushers began to corral the guests into the large banquet hall turned chapel Freddie didn't even notice.

"Freddie? Hello earth to Freddie!"

His attention shifted to the fingers snapping in his face. Following the fingers back to the person they belonged to he saw Carly sitting next to him with an amused smirk. Even though she was pregnant she hasn't even begin to show. She was just as pretty as Freddie remrmbered her. But pretty was all she was. When he was dating her during the whole ran over by a taco truck incident she was great but there wasn't anything special about it. With Sam it was a challenge. He had thought that was a sign the relationship wasn't working. It was only after they broke up that he realized that he loved that challenge and without it no other girl would ever excite him like Sam did. Realizing he was zoning out he snapped his eyes back up to Carly's face.

"Oh hey Carly. How's it going?" Freddie finally managed to stammer out.

"Oh not a whole lot." She dismissed with a wave of her hand. "With the baby on the way I've been sitting around the house shopping for baby cribs and that sort of thing. Its amazing how much a stuff tiny person needs."

"Hey you aren't the one who has to pay for it! " Freddie turned to see Gibby sitting on the other side of him.

"Yeah yeah but just shopping for it all is such a pain ... and I normally love shopping!" Carly whined.

They went back and forth for a few minutes and Freddie couldn't help but think how perfect they were for each other. He wished that he could get this lucky with his love life, but the perfect girl was in his life long ago aand he let her go.

After some long banter Carly noticed that Freddie had his thoughtful expression back on his face and saw the note clutched in Freddie's hand that his gaze kept shifting back to. Her smirk returned to her face.

"You know you haven't changed at all. Once you find something that interests you everything else fades away." She said while poking him in the ribs.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Carly..." Freddie said feigning innocence.

"Ha. Suuuuure you don't." She exclaimed with a laugh before continuing. "You really are an awful liar Freddie. So what's in the note?"

"Oh this? Ummmm." He considered lying, but as Carly had noted earlier he was a terrible liar. Plus Carly had always given him good advice when he was with Sam. Maybe she could give him good advice on how to get over her. After a pause he finally told her. "Its a note from Sam's grandfather."

Carly's eyes light up.

"Oh so you're met Samuel! One of the few decent people in Sam's family." She said and Freddie couldn't help but agreeing. "He had a falling out with Sam's mom a while back but he and Sam were basically inseparable. They came out to me and Gibby's wedding." There was a short pause while Carly reminisced about that day before continuing. "Let me read what he wrote you."

"What? No! " Freddie said while pulling the note out of her reach. He had only intended to tell Carly about the note not let her read all that Samuel had written him. Carly was not one to give up easily and she kept grabbing and reaching for it. She was basically pinned Freddie into his chair but he managed to keep the note out of her Freddie felt a firm hand clamp down on my wrist and force him to hand it over. He glared back at Gibby once he saw that it was him who had moved his arm.

"Gibby what the hell!" Freddie whisper-yelled so as not to get the attention of the whole hall.

"What I'm married. I couldn't not help her." He replied sheepishly before turning away. Freddie sat in his chair silently fuming until he heard a loud awwwww from Carly. He was already beginning to regret telling Carly about the note. "Well here we go." He thought.

"Freddie it's so cute. Its good to see the two of you got along. Sam adores her grandfather." Carly said practically bouncing out of her seat.

"Yeah we got along. He's a really nice person." Freddie deadpanned. An awkward silence fell between them. It was obvious Carly had more to say, but Freddie had no intention of making it easier by asking. Finally she didn't seem to be able to restrain herself any longer

"So... this part about him wishing you were with Sam..." She tentatively asked.

"Yeah what about it? " Freddie replied coldly while looking out over the expansive crowd gathering on the groom's side.

"Ugh Freddie if you are going to make me ask you flat out then so be it! How are you feeling about this whole wedding!" She exclaimed a little too loudly. Many guests on both sides of the room turned to look at her. She apologized while blushing furiously.

"How do you feel about this whole wedding thing! " she asked again in a whisper.

Freddie stared at her serious expression and decided it was probably best not to stall anymore. He knew Carly got a little crazy when it came to feelings and he didn't want to make her angry. With a sigh he told her.

"I just don't know Carly..." he said with a defeated tone. Carly's expression softened.

"What's not to know Freddie? Talk to me." She asked quietly.

"What do you want me to say?"

"Just tell me how you feel." She said with the same concerned tone his mother had during their drive here.

"I don't know. I messed up back in high school. I lost her. Haven't seen her in almost 10 years and now the first time I do see her she is going to get married to some rich jerk! How am I supposed to feel about that? Ugh..." now it was Freddie's turn to be on the recieving end of some stares but he was too upset to care. Carly was rubbing his back to try make him feel better. After a few minutes of sitting there with his head in his hands he finally sat back up. His forlorn expression had disappeared and in its place was a grim one.

"Its ok Carls. I'm happy for Sam. She deserves it and I'm happy for her." Though everything he said sounded believable Carly knew he was trying most of all to convince himself that he was happy for her. She was going to press the issue when the hall suddenly filled with loud wedding music. Freddie's composure from a minute ago crumbled and he basically jumped to his feet. The rest of the hall followed his awkward example and stood up. The groom and his groomsmen stood at the front preparing for the bridal party to enter. This was the first time Freddie had actually seen Mitchell. He stood a good 4 inches taller than himself and had the bronzed tan of someone who had the time to lie on the beach for hours. Carly had to admit he looked pretty nice in general but she always got this cocky annoying impression whenever Sam had brought him around. It was like he looked down on everyone. He even seemed to act that way to Sam but if she noticed, she never mentioned it. Glancing down Carly saw that Freddie had a white knuckled death grip on the chairback in front of him. She placed her hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down. He turned to her and took a deep breathe. He loosened his tie, ran his fingers through his hair and gave her a small smile before turning back to watch the bridal party enter. They entered with the exaggerated slowness customary for weddings, which did nothing to help Freddie's frazzled nerves. Multiple bridesmaids that Freddie couldn't identify walked through the door one after another in expensive dresses. They all seemed so fake with thick makeup and huge pieces of jewelry. Finally after the maid of honor had walked through (Sam wanted Carly to be best maid Mitchel had insisted on one of his ditzy younger cousins) it was time for the bride. Freddie's death grip had returned and he felt himself start to sweat. He knew if he had to wait any longer his heart might just explode. Finally after a few more agonizing seconds Sam finally walked in.

Freddie felt like he had the wind knocked out of him. Sam looked, like an angel. That was the only way he could describe it. Her dress wasn't anything that fancy nor were her few pieces of jewelry (just simple pearl earrings and long necklace that ended underneath the front of her dress so it was impossible to tell what was on the end), and all that did was make her look even more stunning. Her hair flowed down over her shoulders in her natural golden curls and she had only a minimal amount of makeup on. This was something that Freddie had always liked about her. She didn't need fancy clothes or 2 inches of makeup on. She looked beautiful by being who she was, not by covering it up. Freddie felt that he was going weak at the knees when he saw the small smile on her face. She looked genuinely happy and he knew that if he was any form of a good friend he would be happy for her too even if it killed him inside. She was looking around the room and smiling at everyone, and for a brief instant she locked eyes with Freddie. For Freddie the whole rest of the room faded away and it was just him and Sam. The happy look in her eyes seemed to cloud momentarily with some unreadable emotion, but then she looked away and the moment was lost. Freddie was so caught up with Sam that he almost failed to see Samuel was the one escorting her down the aisle. Now he realized that was why the bridal party had taken Samuel from his seat. He gave Freddie a quick wave when he noticed him before turning back to the chapel. Samuel had a giant smile on his face but it was clear he was still worn out from being caught in the storm earlier. His breathing was quick and shallow and when he passed by, Freddie saw that his eyes looked to be burning from all the cigar smoke (it was much more concentrated in this smaller room). None the less the pair slowly made it to the front. Samuel stepped forward to talk to Mitch and Freddie noted with some satisfaction that Mitchell's cocky smile had dropped a few notches while Samuel talked to him. Finally Samuel turned to face Sam and after saying a few words they hugged. Samuel then slowly walked off the small platform toward his seat. The music died down and the priest walked to the podium.

"Welcome! We are gathered here to celebrate the union of two people in the holy act of matrimony. Samantha Puckett and Mitchell Meyers." Freddie almost spoke up out of habit to correct the clergyman and tell him that her name was Sam but he managed to hold his tongue. The priest was going to continue when he was interrupted from a long steady stream of coughing. It was so intense that Samuel staggered a few feet forward out of his chair. Sam immediately rushed off the stage to his side and they talked in hushed whispers. Freddie watched for a moment before turning to Carly.

"Excuse me Carly."

"Freddie what are you doing? " she asked with a surprised tone.

"Hey I'm a doctor. I feel that I need to be up there." Carly thought about it for a second, nodded and let him pass.

Back at the front of the hall Sam and Mr. Isaacson were discussing what to do next.

"Sam I'm fine. This smoke is just irritating my throat a little. Don't worry." Sam could tell very clearly that he wasn't fine. His eyes were tearing up and he looked shortof breathe.

"Grandpa if you aren't feeling well in here then we'll step outside." She insisted firmly.

Mitch chimed in annoyed at the interruption. "Samantha he says he's fine ok? Come back up here and we can continue."

"Mitch my grandpa isn't feeling well. Back off." She retorted. Mitch threw up his hands at her attitude and stalked back over to his groom's men where he mumbled angrily. Mitch's priorities had been getting on Same nerves lately. He was so obsessed with making this wedding perfect that he had been acting like a total ass this last month. Sam tuned him out and returned her attention to her frail grandfather coughing in front of her.

"Sam I'm fine. Don't let me ruin this day ..." Samuel was extremely upset with himself but ever since fighting in Vietnam, smoke never agreed with his lungs and he had a really low tolerance for it. Making the wedding non-smoking had been one of Sam's biggest chores during the planning stage but Mitch had as usual made her change her mind.

"Grandpa! Stop. I'd rather call of the wedding than keep going if you are sick!" Sam stated rather loudly and her voice spilled back where the guests were sitting. Already you could here disgruntled mumbling beginning to form.

"Sammy! He's fine! Now get back up here and stop embarrassing me!" Mitchell looked furious and wasn't even asking any more. These were harsh commands. Samuel glared at him before struggling up of his knees.

"Sam honey. I'm fine. I'll be OK. Get back up there and get married ok?". Samuel managed to crack a smile while fighting the urge to cough. He then whispered just loud enough for Mitch to hear. "Wouldn't want your drama queen fiance to embarrassed himself in front of all his guests again." Mitch glared at him.

"Very funny Sam. Now get back to your seat." Mitch's tone was extremely rude but Sam had been too busy watching Samuel try and hobble to his seat to notice.

Samuel called over his shoulder as he walked toward. "I'm sorry for interrupting your highness. But my name isn't Sam. Not to you at least. You can call Mr. Isaacso..."

He stopped what he was saying and froze. His hands moved to his throat. All that could be heard was a choking wheeze. His hands shakily clawed at his tie trtying to tug it loose for a moment before collapsing face first on the deep carpet of the hall.

_Hey everyone. That's chapter 3. Sorry about the longer wait. Is been difficult to write these chapters and keep the quality up. Let me know how you like it. The next chapter may be the conclusion but we'll see once I get to writing it. Please review. Peace._


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's note. Hey everyone. Glad you enjoyed my last update. I've been taking my time more with updates so I can make the chapters more detailed and entertaining. It seems like that's worked out well so far. This chapter is going to be the last chapter at the wedding. Be warned that there will be more swearing in this chapter in particular so don't be too surprised. I'm not going to preview what happened this AN. I'll let you all find out for yourselves. I hope you all enjoy it._

Sam was petrified. She stood frozen staring out in front of her. She could sense people rushing around her and yelling but it all seemed muted, dull and out of focus. Why was this happening today. Why her wedding day. None of this was fair. It was supposed to be the happiest day of her life...

"SAM! Your grandfather needs you to be here for him! Focus!" Her subconscious screamed at her.

The voice inside her was right; this wasn't the time to panic. Her vision came back into focus and the numbness faded. She looked down at the crowd forming around her grandpa and, in an extremely unladylike show of force, she elbowed and shoved her way through the crowd until she had reached his side. She gently turned him over on his back and pulled him into her lap. He was still weakly scratching at his throat even though they had loosened his shirt collar and removed his tie.

"Grandpa! Are you ok? What's wrong? Please talk to me!?" Sam plead. "Someone call 911!" Sam heard many people rush to their phones. She pulled Samuel up into her arms. And when she looked at his face her resolve from earlier began to crumble. The light in his eyes had began to dim and his movements slowed. Though Sam was trying her best not to cry a single tear did fall on the old man's cheek.

At the same time Freddie who had started to make his way to the front had broken into a sprint when he saw Samuel collapse, but his progress was cut short by the multitude of guests who had gotten up to spectate. Freddie cursed under his breathe and then forced his way through the crowd. When he finally managed to break through the huddle of people he saw Samuel was no longer moving anymore and was being cradled in Sam's arms as she wept. He rushed over to them and pulled Samuel from Sam's grasp and laid him back on the floor.

"Who the hell do you..." Then Sam noticed who she was yelling at and her anger doubled up on itself. "BENSON! What the hell do you think you are doing?" She asked incredulously as Freddie proceeded to rip Samuel's shirt open. Freddie was too focused on Samuel right now to even respond and this only served to make Sam more furious.

"Freddie he's gone!" She shouted at him when Freddie was ignoring her.

"Just leave us alone..." She said finally in little more than a defeated whisper as tears started to pool in her eyes.

It was only when Freddie noticed how depressed her voice sounded did he stop his flurry of movement and turned to her. He grabbed her shoulders firmly. Sam's head just remained slumped refusing to look at him.

"Sam look at me!" He gave her a moment, but when she didn't move he shook her shoulders.

"SAM! He's not gone. He needs you to be here for him." This managed to snap her out of her frozen state. She slowly raised her gaze to meet Freddie's. Freddie was shocked to see her eyes were glazed over like she was going into shock. He wanted more than anything to pull Sam close and hug her until she wasn't sad anymore, but looking back at Samuel Freddie realized he wouldn't have enough time to try and help Sam and her grandfather at the same time. Making a tough decision he called out.

"Carly! I need you and Gib to take care of Sam. Now!" Carly had never heard him talk with such authority and she knew she couldn't even think to argue with him. She and Gibby wordlessly came forward and helped Sam to her feet and over the the chairs.

Meanwhile Freddie was busy checking Samuel's vitals and doing his best to remember what had been taught to him during his ER rotation. He knew he had to try and diagnose this quickly.

"Pulse is a little fast but strong. Not a heart attack."

"Both eyes are reactive. Probably not a stroke."

"Loose muscle tone and didn't lose bladder control, not a seizure"

He kept mumbling to himself as he went through and checked for all the conditions he could remember. This wasn't fair. He was supposed to be a dermatologist for God sake. Shaking the useless thought from his mind he continued checking. Finally, as a precaution, even though he could see Samuel's chest moving he checked the breath sounds in both lungs. There was barely any air moving into his lungs.

"Damn. Why didn't I notice earlier... He had so much trouble breathing when we got inside the building..." Freddie was kicking himself for not noticing sooner. The longer Samuel stayed without oxygen the less chance he would be able to make any sort of recovery. Turning to one of the party guests that had remained nearby he asked.

"You called 911? "

The elderly man just nodded.

"What time? Be precise."

The man checked his phone.

"Umm a minute ago." The guest replied.

Freddie pictured a map in his mind. He remembered passing a hospital during the drive to the club, but it was 10 miles away and separated by miles of busy congested highway. Samuel only had a short amount of time before brain damage set in.

Freddie moved to check Samuels air passages and discovered that while most of them were fine, throat was almost completely clamped shut. There would be no way to open that up again without being at a hospital. He started to sweat. He knew he had to make a decision. The old man's life was in his hands...

"You! Go get me the strongest alcohol you can find in the bar!". He ordered to one of the guests. The only plan he could think of solidified in his mind. Its risky but if it works Samuel would have enough time to get to the hospital. Turning to another guest he shouted.

"You go find me some gloves!"

"Go into the kitchen and see if they have a propane torch. It should be what they use for crème brulé and stuff like that." Freddie ordered and then searched his pockets for his pocket knife.

The men he had dispatched had returned and a cook had provided the torch. Freddie added to those supplies his silver pen given to him by Marissa for his college graduation. And last but not least he pulled the pocket knife he always carried with him. His mother would be mortified to know he kept it, but it was the last anniversary present he ever got from Sam and he just didn't have the heart to throw it out. He noticed that his hands were shaking just thinking about what he was going to have to do. There was no way he could do this without some help. He scanned the crowd and eventually settled on Carly. He called her over.

"Hey Carly I need your help."

"What about Sam?" she asked staring down at the almost catatonic Puckett sobbing in her arms.

"Sam... Sam will be fine. I need your help to save her grandpa! Gibby can take over." Carly looked once more down at Sam before slowly pulling herself out of Sam's arms and walking over to Freddie.

"Is she going to be alright Freddie?" Carly asked when she saw Sam curl up in the chair with Gibby awkwardly hugging her. She then looked back at Freddie whose hands were still shaking like crazy. "Are you going to be ok?"

"Yeah I'll be fine. And Sam is way tougher than me so I know she'll be ok..." he didn't seem to believe what he was saying though. Shaking his head he turned back to look at Mr. Isaacson.

"Right now he needs us more than Sam. I think he has something called laryngospasm. Basically something irritated the muscles in his throat and they clamped down and stopped him from inhaling. Basically we are going to cut a hole underneath the muscles and insert a tube so that he can breathe again." It sounded so easy when you are just talking about it Freddie thought.

The color in Carly's face drained the moment she heard "cut a hole "and Freddie realized how big of a burden he was putting on her.

"Carly if you don't think you can do it then I can ask someone else. It's ok." He said gently. "You won't have to do much. I'LL do the cut and insertion. You just need to hand me supplies when I ask and mop up blood."

After a few seconds of staring at her hands she finally looked back up and responded.

"Ok I can do it Freddie. What do you need me to do." She said grimly.

"Ok we are going to do something called a tracheostomy. You are going to sanitize all the supplies and hand me items when I need okay?"

Her squeamishness seemed to be coming back.

"Do we have to do this Freddie. Can't we just wait for the ambulance?" She almost begged.

"I wish we could wait but there is no telling when the ambulance will be here. Come on. We can do this!" He managed to flash her a smile but they both knew it was fake.

"Ok let's get started." Freddie said grimly. Turning on the torch he had Carly heat up the blade of his knife. At the same time he disassembled his pen and from the multitude of tiny parts he selected the hollow silver body and doused it in alcohol. He poured some over his hands and the gloves he put on. Finally he poured some onto my Isaacson's throat to make it as sterile as possible. He was tempted to take a swig to calm his shaking but he knew that wouldn't be right.

"You ready? " he asked Carly?

" ..." she said shakily. "Lets just get this over with before I pass out."

"Ok here we go..."

Freddie shakily brought his sterilized knife to Mr Isaacson's throat. He let the blade rest on his skin while he steeled his nerves. It was the solitary drop of blood that flowed from the wound that brought the reality of it all crashing down. After a few moments, he slowly sliced through the skin. Instantly crimson blood pooled around his fingers. His knife wasn't as sharp as it used to be and as a result he had to keep making repeat passes. The cheap plastic kitchen gloves were too slippery so he yanked them off and threw them aside. He continued working on the cut and after the longest 30 seconds of his life the cut was finished. Freddie could tell it was working because when Samuel exhaled, the remaining blood bubbled and frothed, splattering Freddie's white shirt and his face. The old man's blood pooled around his fingers and he felt like he was going to throw up. Choking back the bile taste he wiped away as much blood as he could from the wound so he could see where he would be working. Samuel already began to regain color but Freddie knew he had to insert the tube to maintain his temporary airway. He turned to Carly.

"Ok Carly hand me the tube." She shakily placed the tube in his bloody hands. Carly wiped away as much blood as she could and then Freddie began to slowly insert the tube stabilizing Samuel's airway. It was slow going especially with the improvised tools but after about a minute the silver tube sat lodged in Samuel's windpipe and the color started to return to his face.

Freddie sank back onto the floor. He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath for that long.

"Carly we did it!" He finally managed to gasp out.

"So is he going to be ok?" Carly asked still worried.

"Yeah I think so. Now that he can breathe freely we just have to wait for the ambulance. He should be more than stable enough to move." Freddie tried wiping the blood from his fingers but it had already started to cake onto his arms. When he stood up and stretched he noticed that the storm raging outside had started to break. Turning to the groomsmen he asked them if they would help move Samuel outside so he wasn't still breathing in the smoke laden air. Most of them seemed agreeable but Mitch appeared to feel differently.

Mitch simply looked at him with contempt. "I don't take orders from you or anyone. Hell I don't even know who you are!"

Was he being serious right now? The man just had at best amateur surgery and Mitch didn't want to even try to make things more comfortable for him. Freddie wanted to get up and knock him out but he had bigger problems to deal with than Sam's jerk of a fiance. What did she see in him anyway? Deciding that keeping the peace would be a more swift course Freddie answered Mitch's question.

"I'm Freddie. One of Sam's best friends. But what matters is that I'm a doctor and this isn't the time to argue. Samuel can breathe but he's not out of the woods. He's obviously sensitive to the cigar smoke and I want to move him outside so he can breathe a little easier." Freddie was disgusted to have to plead to this jerk but he'd rather swallow his pride and get the old man the help he needed.

"Freddie?" Mitch pondered the name for a second before he remembered.

"Oh that loser that Samantha dated for a while?" Mitch asked.

"Now I understand why you want to save him so bad. You just want to be the hero and try and get Samantha back!" He accused.

Freddie was taken aback. What was this guy talking about? He was just doing this to save Samuel. Right?

While Freddie was questioning his motives, Mitch continued with his little speech. He walked over to where Freddie was kneeling and crouched down. "Allow me to let you in on a little secret about Samantha." Despite himself Freddie couldn't help but lean in to find out what the secret was.

So the remaining guests wouldn't hear he whispered. "That blonde bitch is all mine. I have her wrapped around my finger. Nothing you or that old man do is going to change that." He finished with a sneer.

Freddie's blood boiled. His hands clenched up and though he tried his hardest, he could hold himself back no longer. Channeling all the anger and frustrations he's been storing up since he had gotten that damn wedding invitation he punched Mitchell square in the nose so hard that the skin on his knuckles burst open. Everyone who was nearby was shocked to suddenly see Mitch flat his back, blood gushing from his broken nose with Freddie towering over him. Freddie walked over to Mitch in full view of the guests, picked him up by his collar and let him in on a little secret of his own.

"Her! Name! Is! Sam!" He emphasized each word with another punch and when he was done Mitch's face was a bloodied mess. He then pulled Mitch's face up higher so he could hear him better. Freddie whispered "And if you ever call Sam something like that I swear I will end you. I don't care who you are."

Freddie then dropped Mitch to the floor and kicked him in the stomach causing him to double over in pain. The guests stood terrified of the young man who had basically torn apart the groom. After a few moments, the various groomsmen ran over and helped a groaning Mitch to his feet. He was obviously furious and yelled after Freddie (once he was a safe distance away) as his friends dragged him to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

"You'll pay for this Freddie I swear I'll make you pay. This isn't over! "

But Freddie's attention was already elsewhere trying to get other guest to help him place Samuel on a table and carry him outside. Glancing over his shoulder her noticed that Sam had finally began to come out of her panic and it crushed him when instead of running to Samuel he ran over instead to see if Mitch was ok. Swallowing down the pain he focused on the slow walk outside the club. When they stepped outside the storm wasn't over yet. A steady downpour was still falling..

25 minutes later the ambulance finally pulled up. Two EMTs jumped out and ran over to the table where Samuel was.

"Woah what happened to this Guy?" The younger one asked when he saw the tube sticking out of Samuel's throat.

"He had a laryngospasm. He wasn't breathing and since you all weren't going to make it fast enough I performed an emergency tracheostomy." Freddie relayed to them. The younger of the two wrote all this down while the older one strapped Samuel into a gurney. Admiring the work Freddie had done on Samuel's neck with his mediocre surgical supplies the man asked.

"You did this yourself? How many years have you been practicing? "

"Oh none I'm still working my way through residency." Freddie responded.

"Well I'm impressed kid. This is pretty good. Maybe you'll work at an ER someday." The EMT stated with a smile before he and the other one loaded Samuel into the back.

It was only when they had pulled out of the driveway on the way to the hospital did Freddie allow himself to relax. He had been running on adrenaline this whole time and in its absence the whole day was catching up with him. He slowly walked out over the lawn his shoes sticking to the muddy ground. He finally made it to the rain soaked chapel which appeared as nothing more than a sad shell. Freddie could relate. He collapsed into one of the chairs and sat there staring at his still blood soaked hands.

Meanwhile Sam had been talking with Mitch trying to calm him down.

"Samantha look what that jerk did to me!" Mitch raged. Sam couldn't really blame him much. Freddie had broken his nose, busted his lips, bruised his cheeks and given him a black eye. She would almost have been impressed if it hadn't have been for the fact its her fiance who had been Freddie's target.

"I know honey I know. He was way out of line." Sam said soothingly. While she understood his anger she was a little upset that he hasn't even asked once how she was feeling.

"Sam what the hell is your asshole of a ex-boyfriend doing here anyway?!"

"Mitch he's one of my oldest friends and yeah we dated but we broke up..." Why did she even have to explain this. It's her wedding too. "What did you two even fought about?" She had to ask.

Mitch seemed to get a little nervous at that question. "Oh it was nothing. He just freaked out and started hitting me..."

Sam definitely had a hard time believing that. "Really? I've never known Freddie to just react physically for no reason."

"Well um... Oh he said something about going to win you back once he saved your grandpa. Yeah now I remember. And I told him that wouldn't happen because you loved me and then he like flipped out."

What the hell? Freddie was trying to win me back by saving Samuel? That sort of does explain why he was so adamant about helping him. Sam felt herself become mad just at the thought.

"Oh I'm so going to make him regret that." Sam whispers murderously under her breathe. Mitch heard her and smiled realizing that his lie had worked. Sam decided to stop thinking about that for the time being.

"Hey so Samuel is being driven to the hospital right now. If we hurry we can make it there a little bit after he does." Sam said.

"What? No. I don't want to go to the hospital. I have like 200 guests and I gotta tell them when we are rescheduling the wedding to. Two weeks should be good.". Mitch said dismissing Sam's entire idea.

"Mitch there is no way Samuel will be up for a wedding in 2 weeks." Sam stated confused at the timeline.

"Well then he doesn't have to come at all.". Mitch said this with

"Mitch, he's like the only family I have left, and the only near father I've ever had!". Sam was shocked he would even suggest having the wedding without Samuel there.

"Honey he's like 100 and slow and can't clean up nicely to save his life." Mitch said with a snort.

"He's 89, has bad joints from injuries he took during the Vietnam war and you are judging him on his wardrobe?! I can't believe you right now." Now it was Sam's turn to be upset.

"He makes your entire wedding party look bad. And this hospitalization is just the excuse you could use to not bring him." Once again Mitch was acting like not including him would be a positive addition.

"Mitch oh my god I can't believe you right now." Sam got up from her seat and started walking away. Mitch ran up behind her and put his arms around her shoulder.

"Come on Sammy. Think about it. I know you had to invite him because he's family and all that. But now you don't need to bring him at all. My face will have healed by then and then my i mean our wedding would be perfect. We can have a nice classy wedding without annoying family to get in the way."

Sam quickly shrugged out of his grasp.

"Mitch how do you not understand this?! This wedding won't be a real wedding for me without him here! You're so caught up in your damn image and having a "perfect wedding" that you are forgetting the whole point.". Sam was trying her best to keep her voice down but Mitch was seriously getting under her skin. "And if you can't see that then maybe getting married is a mistake!". She crossed her seems with a pout.

She couldn't believe she had said that but she knew it needed to be said. Mitch looked shocked.

"Samantha are you kidding me? Just because your fossil of a grandpa couldn't make it you want to call of this wedding? Do you know how much work went into this? Not to mention the money!?" Mitch's tone had shifted to anger by now.

"That's all you care about is the damn money!" Sam screamed no longer caring about the noise.

Mitch's behavior did a 180. He stepped really close to her and his eyes became dark. Mitch grabbed her wrist and pulled her close.

"Keep your goddamn voice down. There are important people outside and I won't have you embarrassing me."

"Mitch let go you're hurting me !" Sam tried to pull out of his grip but his fingers only tightened. There was sure to be a bruise later.

"I said keep your voice down!" Mitch shouted. Sam was about to yell at him but was interrupted by a loud slap echoing around the room. Sam's shouts died down in her throat as her free hand moved up to touch her stinging cheek.

"See what you made me do?". Mitch asked her. "If you had just shut up like I told you to then none of this would have happened." Sam was petrified. She knew much could have a temper, but she never knew he would resort to physical violence. "Now come get yourself cleaned up we need to go talk to these guests and apologize for this whole mess."

Mitch tried to drag her over to the sink but Sam stood frozen in place still cupping her face. Mitch's anger boiled up again.

"Didn't you learn what would happen if you didn't listen to me?!" His hand raised up again, but this time Sam was ready. She quickly punched him in the stomach. He doubled over in pain and released her hand. Sam quickly backed away from him.

"You little bitch! How could you do that to me?". Mitch asked while still hunched over.

"I should have done that a long time ago! How did I not notice you were such an ass?". Then in one swift motion Sam yanked off the massive engagement ring tossed it on the floor stomped on it and then rushed out the door. She heard him yell at her through the spot.

"Good riddance. We would want to marry a crazy bitch like you anyway. You'll just end up like your whore mother now!"

Sam burst out of the room and sobbed her way through the guests knocking a few of them over. She heard them muttering about how rude she was but she couldn't bring herself to care. She rushed outside into the rain and falling to her knees she threw up repeatedly. The pain in her stomach refused to go away and she felt fresh tears well up in her eyes. Her whole life was a mess. She stayed hunched over like that watching the mud seep into her unbelievably expensive dress. After a few minutes catching her breath she shakily staggered to her feet and leaned against a column to keep from falling. She gazed around at the rain-soaked landscape. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a figure walking towards the parking lot. Seeing that it was Freddie she pushed herself off the column and began running towards him. She tried calling out to him but her throat was too parched from the screaming and crying and all that came out as a hoarse whisper that was swiftly drowned out by the rain. She made it about halfway toward the cars when her dress got caught in her shoes and sent her tumbling to the dirty ground. She wiped away the dirt that had splashed into her face and looked up one more time just in time to see that Freddie had already pulled out of the parking lot and turned onto the highway. Breaking down again she collapsed onto the muddy grass her tears hidden by the rain.

_Well what do you think? Longest chapter I've written yet and I'm pretty proud of it. I know I had wanted to make this the final chapter but I had an idea and I wanted that to be the ending. Sorry. Please be sure to review. Its what motivates me to write faster. The next chapter should be up soon._


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